“Holidays are hard to come by, but my fondest [holiday] memories are tied to nature and food,” says award winning chef Gray Kunz. “This past spring I had the unique opportunity to follow a friend of mine (mushroom enthusiast as I am) on his yearly morel hunt in north eastern Pennsylvania. By the end of the day we had collected about 7 pounds. In exchange for my friend letting me into his secret foraging grounds, I gave him my morel recipe. I think this will turn out to be my yearly tingle,” enthuses Gray.

For Gray, who commutes between New York, where Café Gray is located, and Hong Kong, the home of Café Gray Deluxe, when it comes to picking a favourite holiday restaurant, it’s not just the food that counts, but the location. One such example is the Islesford Dock Restaurant on the island Islesford in northern Maine. “You can only access the island by mail boat... the dock restaurant there serves great lobster roll (the chefs go down a few yards off the dock to pick their lobsters) and great simple grilled halibut from local waters,” he enthuses. Kunz believes a great restaurant should respect the region where they are located and the seasons, and this is just what the Islesford Dock Restaurant does so well “simple local, seasonal cuisine.”

For over 30 years, Fulvio Pierangelini has headed up Gambero Rosso, one of the finest restaurants in the world, located in Livorno, Italy. He also freelances, with one of his most renowned recent contributions being the menu overhaul at Boconi’s, the Italian restaurant at the Hotel Amigo in Brussels. But when not slaving over his stove or jetting around Europe retooling restaurants, he’s in the Eternal City: Rome.

Most don’t see Italy’s capital as a typical holiday destination, but Pierangelini says it’s his favourite vacation spot. And when in the fine capital, he does as the Romans do, dining at the quaint store-cum-restaurant, Roscioli (pictured below). Having found the small trattoria when looking for Cinta Senese (a Tuscan pig breed) cold cuts for his son, he soon discovered that it was more than just a store. “There’s cold cuts, cheese, a good choice of wine, plus many products that you usually find inside a shop,” says Pierangelini. “But we’re talking about a grocery store that suddenly becomes an excellent restaurant; typical dishes of the Roman tradition. And you'll find the tastiest bread in the whole of Rome.”

All of Roscioli’s homecooked fare is prepared by a small family of Romans, and with Pierangelini’s culinary philosophy being “simplicity”, it’s of little surprise that his favourite dish at Roscioli’s is a plate of anchovies drizzled in olive oil.